Sylia woke up slowly, opening her eyes a crack as she allowed a yawn to escape. Linna was still asleep; the younger woman's nude body snuggled close to hers as her head rested near her leader's chest. As Sylia watched her sleep, she thought back on last night. -- Linna had grown up in the country, under the strict and watchful eyes of her parents. Her dates with the men her folks had tried to set her up with never went very far due to her curfew and her lack of interest in the opposite sex, and she knew of no lesbians in the small town she came from. As a result, she was still something of a virgin. And now, here she was in her bedroom with another woman. No, not just another woman; she was with the elegant and beautiful Sylia Stingray. She was nervous, afraid of not doing the right thing or somehow not living up to Sylia's expectations. Sylia meanwhile had removed her skirt and was in the process of taking off her top when she noticed the other woman was looking away, "Linna?" she asked, "Is everything alright?" Linna took a deep breath and looked at her, "Sylia," she began, her face blushing a bit from embarrassment, "I... I've never..." Sylia smiled as she gently took Linna's hand, leading the timid woman over to the bed where they both sat down. She then put her arm around her, holding her tenderly as she looked once again into her beautiful blue eyes. "Linna," she said softly, "If you're scared, or want to hold off..." "No," she answered as she shook her head, "I want to Sylia. I... I just... You're so beautiful, and I..." Sylia tilted her head, "You're afraid of disappointing me, right?" Linna lowered her eyes as she nodded. Sylia reached over and began to run her fingers through the other woman's hair, "Linna, you could never disappoint me. You've been there for me when I needed a friend the most these past weeks, and I've had a wonderful time with you tonight. And now, rather than worrying about pleasing me, let me worry about returning the favor to you," she said as she leaned forward and kissed her. They fell back on the bed, Linna allowing a small gasp to escape as Sylia lowered her hand and cupped her right breast. -- Sylia smiled fondly at the memories. Linna had allowed her to take the lead, surrendering herself totally to her hands, mouth and tongue. She remembered the younger woman panting under her, thrusting her hips as her muscles tensed up, and calling out her name at the moment of release. As she looked as her now sleeping form, she once again recalled holding her weary form in her arms last night. She'd been right too; Linna had been a quick learner, and when she'd recovered and began to make love to Sylia, she most certainly did not disappoint her. She leaned forward and kissed her gently on the forehead. Linna stirred a bit and opened her eyes. "Good morning," Sylia whispered. Linna looked at her sleepily for a few seconds before the corners of her lips twisted up into a smile. "'Morning," she said as she gave Sylia a light peck on the lips. She then snuggled closer as the older woman wrapped her arms around her. They lay together silently for several minutes, enjoying the sweet intimacy of the moment. Finally, Linna spoke up again, "Sylia, it's Saturday," she said, her voice sounding a bit down, "You're going to have to go back to open the Silky Doll soon." Sylia sighed heavily as she hugged her closer, "You'll come to visit for lunch?" she asked. Linna leaned in, "Just try to keep me away," she said as she kissed her tenderly. They pulled back, and Sylia sat up. As Linna gazed at the older woman's topless form admiringly, the leader of the Knight Sabers looked over to a wall clock hanging in the bedroom. "Seven fifteen," she read. A smile slowly spread upon her face, "And the Doll opens at nine-thirty on Saturdays..." "Really?" Linna asked as she narrowed her eyes. "Gee, what would you suggest we do in the meantime?" she asked with a smirk as she stroked Sylia's upper arm. Sylia moved back over to Linna, "I think I can come up with something," she purred as she lowered herself on top of her fellow Knight Saber. ------ Mackie walked into the living room as the sun slowly rose upon a new day and found Henderson already up and dusting the coffee table. "Good morning Henderson." The butler turned around, smiling cordially as he bowed, "Good morning master Mackie." As Mackie walked further into the room he looked around, "Is sis up yet?" "No," he answered, adding, "She isn't here." Mackie looked at Henderson with concern in his face, "She's not here? Where is she?" "She called last night," he explained, "She stayed over at Miss Yamazaki's." Mackie tilted his head a bit at that, "I wonder why she stayed there," he asked as he turned and headed towards the elevator. Henderson watched him go with a bemused smirk; after Sylia's mother died, it was Henderson who dried her tears while her father was doing his research. And when her father was later killed by Galatia, again it was he whom the young child went to for comfort. He knew her better than most, and he'd seen how much Linna had been around during her recovery. Unlike Mackie, he wasn't blind to what was happening. And knowing how much Linna obviously seemed to care for her, he was happy to know Sylia had not only found happiness with another person since Nigel's death, but that she'd found it with someone as sweet and down to earth as the country girl seemed to be. "Good for her," he muttered to himself as he returned to his dusting. -That Afternoon- Priss sat in the hospital waiting room, watching the clock slowly tick away the minutes. Next to her sat Nene, the blonde eating chips as she absentmindedly skimmed through a tabloid from the magazine rack. The little computer whiz had volunteered to come along to keep her company while waiting. The bland muzak playing over the intercom, as well as the smell of disinfectant, was slowly getting on the singer's nerves. "Look at this," Nene muttered as she read one of the articles about an actor who left his wife for another woman, "Can you believe that guy?" "Of course I can," Priss said irritably as she pointed at the picture in the magazine, "The other woman has bigger tits." "Priss!" Nene shrieked. The brunette was no longer listening though as she got up and strode over to the reception desk. "Hello," the boomer behind the desk said, "Can I help you?" Priss narrowed her eyes, "Yeah, you can help me. I've been sitting next to Pollyanna over there for the last hour waiting to get this god damned cast off my arm. Now what the fuck is the holdup?" "Priss," Nene said as she came over, "There's no need to make a scene, we..." "The doctor will see you shortly," the boomer receptionist reassured, "Meantime, why not take a look at some of the magazines in the waiting room or..." "You know what you can do with your magazines," Priss growled just before Nene grabbed her good arm and yanked her away. "Priss," Nene said when they were back in their seats, "You didn't have to do that." "Nene, I've had this stupid thing on my arm for over a month now. I want it off." "Sheesh, you don't have to be a grouch though. And I heard that ‘Pollyanna' comment. If you want me to leave..." "(sigh) No, you don't have to leave," Priss muttered as she rolled her eyes. As annoying as the little computer geek was, she at least was serving to keep the singer occupied while she waited. "So, how did last night go with you and Mackie?" she asked, deciding to change the subject. "It was okay," she answered, "We invited Sylia to come over, but she declined." "I don't doubt it," Priss smirked, "I could just imagine her in one of her business suits trying to maneuver through that junkyard you call a living room." "It's not a junkyard!" Nene said defensively, "It's my collection of antique computers. And according to Mackie she couldn't come over because she already had plans with Linna or something." Priss raised an eyebrow at that. She thought back to her conversation with Leon the previous night. Sylia and Linna had been spending a lot of time together since the leader of the Knight Sabers had gone sober. Could the big lummox have actually been onto something... "Miss Asagiri," the receptionist called out as a door to the side opened, "The doctor will see you now." "About time," the singer grumbled, setting thoughts of Linna and Sylia aside as she headed in to get her cast off. ------ Sylia cashed out the customer, glancing at her wristwatch as she did so. As the woman who'd purchased the lacy underwear with the three bras and a pair of stockings opened the door to leave, the familiar sound of Linna's moped was heard as it pulled up to the curb. The leader of the Knight Sabers felt her heart flutter as the younger woman came in carrying a small bag. "Sorry I'm a bit late," she said as she reached into her bag, pulling out a bento box and chop sticks. She passed them to Sylia as she explained, "I would've been here sooner, but I didn't finish making these until just before I left." Sylia opened the small boxed lunch, "You fixed this?" she asked as Linna pulled her own box out. "Yes," she said as she opened the lid of her own lunch, "So eat it now, while there are no customers around and it's still warm." "Of course," Sylia answered as she reached over and cupped Linna's cheek, "Just as long as you're there to help again if I need it like last night." Linna blushed sweetly at the compliment, as well as Sylia's touch. "Sylia," she said as she looked around, "We're in public." Sylia sighed, "Of course," she said, grabbing some of the lunch with her chopsticks. She was about to eat when she saw Linna lower her head. "Itadakimasu," Linna said. She then looked back up and started to eat. Sylia smiled, "Itadakimasu," she said, repeating the meal blessing. The rest of the meal was spent in quiet conversation about customers, boomer managers, and other casual small talk. At last, the meal was over. As Linna was packing the bento boxes back away, a young woman came in and began looking around at some of the dresses. "Miss," she asked Sylia, "can you help me pick something out for a dinner date?" "Of course ma'am. I just need to take care of something first in the back. Linna," she said as she turned to her fellow Knight Saber, "Could you come in the back with me to give me a hand?" "Huh?" Linna asked, "Oh, sure," she said as she followed her into the back room behind the cash register. Once the door was closed behind them, Sylia pulled her over, pressing her lips hard into hers as she cradled the back of Linna's head in her hand. Linna closed her eyes as her tongue met Sylia's, her arms wrapping around her as she pressed her leader into the wall behind her. Their lips separated as Sylia pulled back, "I've been waiting to do that since you came in," she whispered as she kissed the side of Linna's throat. Linna's jaw went slack as Sylia continued to plant warm kissed along her jaw line, "Mmmm... Sylia," she whispered, "Your customer..." "I know," she answered, "Tonight then?" "Tonight," Linna answered, bringing her lips back to Sylia's. A few minutes later, the customer looking at the evening gowns watched as Sylia and Linna walked out of the back room, both women's clothing looking a bit ruffled. As Sylia went to take care of her customer Linna left the store, straightening her hair out a bit as she left. -Evening- She stood back stage in her black leather rock-goddess outfit, stalking back and forth as she heard the sounds of the audience gathered at Hot Legs waiting for tonight. For her. "And now," the owner of Hot Legs Tony Ishimura finally announced from the stage, "Back by popular demand, Sekiria with Priss!" Priss strode out onto the stage like a panther stalking her prey. As the audience cheered and the band went to their instruments, she grabbed the mike stand and held it high over her head, causing the concert goers to go into a frenzy. She smiled self-satisfactorily; she could read audiences well. Tonight was going to be a good night. "Are you ready?" she screamed into the mike as the opening bars of the new song they were doing began. The roar of approval that came back to her left little doubt to the answer to her question. ------ The construction boomer was an old type 2-F model, a virtual dinosaur of a machine that was being used on the site by the contractors to cut construction costs. The older boomer was missing most of the newer updates intended to safeguard more recent boomer models from potentially going rogue. Late in the evening, it lumbered to the main charger station, plugging itself in along with several other boomers as they powered up to continue the work on the new office center into the night. If the AD Police ever found the 2-F model, the construction company would face heavy fines and no doubt loose their contract. The potential for higher profit using the cost-cutting procedure though was enough to make them risk it. Unfortunately, something wasn't right with this particular 2-F. As it stood there plugged into the charger, its core went bad. The boomer's form started to slowly deform as it went rogue. Equally unfortunate was the fact that it began to infect the other boomers plugged into the charger with its defect. Looking up into the darkening sky, the older boomer gave out a metallic yell as tentacles shot out of its back. Two blocks away from the construction site, Nene sat in a restaurant across from Mackie, the blonde eating a large sundae as her boyfriend nursed a milkshake. "So how was Priss today?" Mackie asked. Nene rolled her eyes, "You know Priss. Geez, she can be such an old poo, I swear. I..." the blonde was cut off as an explosion shook the building. Both she and Mackie ran outside to see people running in fear down the street. "What's happening?" Mackie asked a frightened man in a construction hat who was running by. "Rogue boomers!" he yelled, adding "Run for your life!" as he ran away from him. Mackie turned around to see Nene running for her scooter. The blonde waved him over, and he sat behind her. "We have to get back to the Silky Doll quick," Nene said as she weaved the scooter through traffic and frightened pedestrians, "Quick, call Linna," she ordered as she took a sharp turn. Mackie reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his cell phone, hitting Linna's number on speed dial. After two rings, he heard the phone being picked up. "Hey sexy," a sultry voice purred. Mackie pulled the phone away with a stunned look on his face. He stared at it for a second or two, and then put it back to his ear. "Linna?" "Eep... Mackie?" Linna gasped, realizing the "Stingray" on the caller I. D. wasn't the one she'd been hoping for. She could actually feel her face turn red. "Uh, er... What's up?" "Rogue boomers. Meet me and Nene over at Sylia's." "Roger," she said. She then quickly took off the green dress she was wearing, put a blouse and pants on, and raced out the door of her apartment to her moped. ------ Sylia rubbed her temples as her headache continued to nag her. Her hand had been trembling a bit for the last half-hour, but nowhere near as badly as it was at dinner last night. She decided when she went to pick Linna up later that she would ask if they could just stay there tonight and maybe order out. She wasn't feeling her best right now, and all she wanted was to just rest her head on Linna's shoulder while the other woman held her close. For now though, she had to first close the Silky Doll before she left. As her headache continued to plague her, she reflected how easy it would be to just wash down two or three aspirin or other painkillers with a shot of brandy. But of course she'd sworn off alcohol, as well as her little junior pharmacy she had in her medicine cabinet. As she was about to lock the door, she heard it; Linna's moped. Her fellow Knight Saber must've decided to come and visit her at her place instead. She smiled as she saw her girlfriend park the small vehicle and get off. Her smile quickly faded as she saw the look on Linna's face, as well as Nene and Mackie racing around the curb to park next to the office lady's moped. Linna reached the building first, bursting through the door. "Linna," Sylia asked as she ran to keep up with her, "What..." "Rogue boomers," she called over her shoulder. She and Sylia entered the secret elevator, and were soon joined by Nene and Mackie. As the elevator quickly descended, Sylia hid her shaking hand behind her as her head continued to throb. ------ As Linna and Nene leaped from one roof to the other, Sylia began to think about how ridiculous the situation was. What the hell were people thinking keeping the boomers around, especially after the whole Galatia incident? She remembered volunteering to give a speech to the Japanese Parliament, as the daughter of the man who invented boomers, on why boomer technology should be abandoned. The letter she got back politely told her to stick to selling women's lingerie and keep her nose out of politics. "Um, sis?" Sylia turned to Mackie as she continued to massage her temples, "Yes?" "Are... Are you sure you should be here?" he asked, "I mean..." Sylia put a hand on his shoulder, "I'll be fine," she reassured, "Besides, I am the leader of the Knight Sabers. I have to get back into the swing of things some time." She then turned her attention to the command center in front of her as she spoke into a speaker, "Linna, Nene, are you there yet?" "Yeah," Linna answered, "We... Good god..." "What?" Sylia asked in alarm, "What is it?" "Sylia," Nene broke in, "This thing looks like it's made up of a bunch of boomers fused together somehow." "What? Mackie, get over to the control panel and get me visual," she ordered crisply, adding, "Any word yet from Priss?" "No, nothing. She must still be performing. I've left nine messages already." "How many encores does that woman need?" she asked exasperatedly as the shake in her hand seemed to increase. Mackie meanwhile got his sister the visuals on the monitors around her so she could see what the two Knight Sabers out on the field were seeing. The thing lurching towards them was made up of six or seven construction boomers fused together, arms and legs of two of them becoming twisted into claw like fingers. Long, grotesque tentacles stretched into the night sky from it. It towered a good twelve to thirteen feet above the young women looking up at it. "Nene, you try to attract its attention," Linna commanded, "I'll start work on the tentacles. Let me know when your sensors pick up the core." "Will do." Nene said, as she fired her needles at the monster's face. Linna leaped up to begin cutting away at the tentacles with her ribbon cutters. Then everything went to hell. One of the thing's hands reached out and grabbed the ribbon cutters, leaving Linna suddenly dangling helplessly off the ground. It then swung her, hard, towards a brick wall. "Fuck..." was all Linna was able to get out before impact. "Linna!" Nene and Sylia both screamed in unison. Nene's scream got the boomer's attention. Using the ribbon cutters as a sling shot, it swung Linna into her, knocking them both into a steel girder. Linna's visual feed abruptly cut out. "Linna!" Sylia screamed, "Nene! Answer me, damn it!" ------ "Hello? Anyone? Hello?" Linna finally gasped out. The wind had been knocked out of her when she had landed, and she was still seeing spots before her eyes. All around her she could hear noises; crashes, scrapping, the roar of the boomer; but she couldn't see anything. She tried to get up, but couldn't move. ‘Am I paralyzed?' she thought. She tried to wiggle her toes, sighing with relief when she succeeded. But she still had no audio feed, no monitor to show her what was happening around her, and her suit was frozen in place. "The son-of-a-bitch smashed my internal battery," she muttered to herself. In the old suits, even when the battery went dead, you could still force some movement out of it. Such was not the case with the second generation suits. Her mind raced back to Priss telling her about when her suit went dead in the last battle against Galatia, how she couldn't move anything at all. In Priss' case, she had the Motoslave to come save the day. Nigel had said it was a simple design flaw with the liquid metal. Not to worry he told her and the others, he'd have it worked out eventually. Unfortunately, he was killed before he could work out the problem. And since Linna didn't have a motoslave of her own to come rescue her, the only thing standing between her and that hulking monstrosity out there was Nene. Being cut off and unable to move, she also realized there was no way to let anyone know she was still alive. And with her hardsuit's power gone, there was no way to recycle air and no way to open her visor. If someone didn't help her, and fast, it was only a question of whether or not the boomer or carbon dioxide poisoning did her in, and she knew it. ------ "Linna! Linna!" Nene was screaming at the figure on the ground. Nothing. No movement. Not a word. Nothing. Sylia, for her part, was watching the visuals coming in from Nene's visor with a horrified look in her eyes. "No," she whimpered, clutching the sides of her head as tears began to form at the corners of her eyes, "Not again. Please..." "Sylia, Mackie, what do I do?" Nene cried out, "Where's Priss? Sylia!" Sylia stood up and ran at top speed to the room with the suit chambers, stripping her clothes off along the way as fast as she could with her shaky hands. "Sis," Mackie asked, panic evident in his voice, "what are you doing?" "Initiate the liquid metal immersion!" she commanded as she ran into the room. "What?" he asked incredulously, "Sis, you can't..." "The fuck I can't!" she yelled as the door shut behind her, "I'm going in!" -To be continued- End Notes: A bento box is a type of traditional Japanese lunch box. Also, "Itadakimasu" is the traditional meal blessing said before meals in Japan and roughly translates to "I humbly receive." Coming from the country, it occurred to me that Linna would probably say the traditional Shinto prayer before eating her lunch.
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